Categories: uncategorized
Date: 06 January 2005 09:37:13
My second least favourite day of mission is set up day. This involves removing three large marquees, five smaller marquees, 6 sleeping tents (each sleeping up to 9 people), six fridges, two ovens, eating equipments, other cooking utensils, loads of rope and poles and other equipment from a shed where they have been a breeding ground for spiders and who knows what else for the last year and assembling them into a temporary home for 60 people.
For most people, set up day begins at around 5am when they leave home and attempt to arrive on site by 9:30. This year I was only 20 minutes late. Quite an achievement really. In reality, the compulsory arrival time is more an effort to get people there before lunch time. Last year I discovered that when one is 23 years old and not travelling with one's parents, it is permissable to have both a bacon and egg muffin AND hotcakes at McDonalds during the 2 hour stop, revive, survive stop!
On arrival at the campsite I tend to wander around for a bit looking lost. Despite years in Guides, I seem to have forgotten how to put tents up. I am willing to help but having been on team for a while it is sort of expected that I know what to do. However I don't think this is the case.
Eventually the kitchen stuff starts to surface from the shed. This all needs to be washed. Every cup, plate, knife, fork, spoon, saucepan, spatula and jug (not to mention all the other things that I didn't name just then). Sitting in a shed all year can be very dirty business. I have never quite worked this out. But anyway, it's all fairly grotty. This job takes the best part of the morning.
Once there are enough clean cups, we have morning tea. Or cordial. As the electricity is not connected yet. And some sort of food. This year it was cupcakes.
After morning tea, the washing up continues until there are enough clean plates, bowls and chopping boards for us to make lunch. We also need to unearth the knives. For future reference, the Mundial knives live in the Mac box along with the toasters and other small appliances.
The rest of the day is spent during more of the same. People keep putting up tents, connecting electricty, installing lights in tents and marquees and grassy areas, fixing up hot and cold running water for the kitchen, connecting gas etc, I cook dinner with my fellow cooks, we eat, we all collapse into bed. Not together mind you. Scripture Union is quite strict about such things.